Covid-19 became the thief of the moment. Unmasked this virus is stealing our health, our grandparents, our loved ones, and our dreams. It is stealing our jobs and turning our lives upside down. Life may never be the same. We may never tango again.
What we are experiencing may be a symptom of climate change and farming practices. Take note of the effects of deforestation, pollution, rising temperatures, agriculture practices, and animal farming on human health. Wild animals and plants are forced to find new habitats in order to survive. Vegetable seed is genetically modified with insecticides. Grown into edible plants, they are then consumed by humans degrading their immune systems. Meat raising practices, from chickens to cows, are fertile conditions for spreading disease to human populations.
Everything is interconnected as are the solutions. A vaccine offers hope. It’s a reaction to the virus that is plundering our lives. Yet it is only a temporary solution. We need to be prepared for others. We need to listen to the science, preparing ourselves physically and mentally, to deal with the next life-threatening mutation, while taking measures to reverse climate-changing factors.
Pandemic said the scientists. Some leaders were not heeding their advice, making matters worse, sacrificing people for the economy. The entire world seemed out of control. Even God wasn’t helping.
Yes, the economy is nearly ravaged, a sinkhole of despair, a black hole of foreboding misery, it stands lifeless outside our door. Is this the beginning of the end? Will it rain for 40 days and 40 nights? Yet who can better save us than ourselves. Our survival of this virus depends on cooperation until we have a vaccine.
Some countries appeared to be losing their grip on societal order and their economies. Their leaders, like the president of the US and Brazil, chose to deny that there was a problem. Fake news, they chuckled and with their distorted truth and shameful denial, the virus spread at an exponential rate.
Masks became commonplace as scientists warned of overwhelmed medical services. Masks they said offered protection from exposure and viral-spreading. Good advice to follow, yet for some, it became a political statement not to wear a mask. The issue of personal freedom to choose became their selfish mantra.
On a good day, our fears might diminish and our anxiety plummet. The functionality of the mask takes on new possibilities for us. It becomes a point of humor and fashion. It also becomes ornamentation, a fashion accessory. It offers a playful way to differentiate ourselves and express our uniqueness, even as our unmasked world evaporates. Color and design options are added. And these changes offer a momentary reprieve from the sadness enveloping our lives and the economy.
I hope that you enjoy a stroll through my barrio in Buenos Aires. Humanity finds a way to adapt and some people do better than others. Life goes on. We find new ways to embrace with Zoom and physical distancing. We struggle to continue our routines. We work, exercise, and shop but in a modified form to our past life, a mere 3 months ago. This is our new reality.
No matter the country where you live, the language of the eyes, bodily expressions, and local cultural costumes tell similar stories. The portraits shared here are snapshots of each of us. They represent our humanity.
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